I loved this book! I really enjoyed her story and the way she copes with chronic illness using yoga. I hoped for more yoga poses (there are some but not a lot) hence the 4 star rating.

As a yogi in training I’m always looking for others in the industry’s take on yoga and healing abilities. We’ll written from a place love care and love. Great reference book for any yogi, and example of using yoga for healing.
Recommend it to all and definitely beginners.

Having several autoimmune illnesses myself, I was interested to see what information might help me. Having never practiced yoga, I was open to whatever might help make my quality of life better. Right away I could tell this was not just an ordinary yoga book of “do this” or something similar, Since the author has been teaching yoga for awhile, this book was more in depth and referred to poses and names I am totally unfamiliar with. It may me realize that this book would be more helpful to those who had a basic understanding of yoga. So for me personally, the information was not relatable or anything that I would pursue. Also I reached out to others with autoimmune illnesses, the book is not anything they are interested in trying either. Perhaps this book is more beneficial to younger people.
I received an advanced reader copy for free from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

decide whether it is going to be a good day or a bad day ? The author of this book went through this check and fears for almost two years before she realised that all her fears can come true any day but not worth worrying about them and she needs to live in the current moment.

The author, a yoga practitioner when diagnosed first with Multiple sclerosis (MS) and after a year with lupus her world changed drastically. If you have not heard about these diseases then do not google it just know that these chronic diseases can cause - unbearable fatigue, sudden heart failure, kidney failure etc. These diseases forced her to change her perspective about life - What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning ? Do you check your body and from cursing herself for everything in life in the beginning to making peace with it ( Santosha ).

Now where does yoga fit into this ? Whenever she was in stress she found solace in Yoga Asanas. Yoga asanas allowed her to be in the current moment. The Asanas she talks about in the book are - Savasana, Forward Fold, Cat/Cow , Child’s pose, Down Dog, Side Plank, Mountain pose, Tree, Chair. She would do any of these asanas for 30 seconds any time she felt stressed.

This is a good read. Live in the Present !!!

This is a beautiful book and should be included in the reading matter of everyone struggling with chronic illness. I've been a yoga teacher for five years and most of my students come to me with pain in their bodies: injuries, illnesses, past wrongs expressed physically. Not all yoga is about fitness and cute workout clothes. In The Yoga Prescription, Cory Martin has written a poignant and honest account of how to move your body through yoga to manage your symptoms and feel better, especially for those living with chronic illness. What I loved about this book is the simplicity of the poses, and the explanations of why they will help you. You won't find any lengthy sequences filled with lectures in this book. This isn't a workout guide. There is nothing intimidating about this approach with yoga. All ages and abilities can do it. I also appreciated the practical nature of the The Yoga Prescription's approach: it's compassionate and oh so smart without falling into the trap of new age woo woo.

I've read a great many yoga books but none are like this one. There is hope in Cory's quiet, steady voice and practical application of yoga poses for wellness and healing. This book is a a wonderful resource on how to be well when you're not well. I found solace in these pages and will be recommending The Yoga Prescription to friends and yoga students.

This would make a wonderful holiday gift this year: Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus, etc. I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review and am happy to recommend this book.

NB: the review below will be published on my blog in November. I haven't finished the final edits, but the basic content will be the same. I'm probably going to add a quick disclosure/preamble about my bias (I'm also RYT and have a ton of teacher education) and note that most people won't be annoyed by my pet peeve topics.

If you live with chronic pain, you’ve probably had at least one well-meaning friend tell you, “oh, you definitely need to do yoga!” (Or so I am told by my friends who live with chronic illness.) It’s become a meme, along the same lines as “if the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.” I was surprised to see Cory Martin, a person who lives with chronic pain due to MS and lupus, not just make this suggestion, but also write an entire book about it. Now to be fair, Ms. Martin was doing yoga (and teaching yoga) before she received either diagnosis, so she may have been more receptive to the idea than most; more important, she has the lived experience to back the suggestion to do yoga AND the chops to suggest appropriate practices and how to work with your body.

Disclosure: I was lucky to get the opportunity to access an advance readers copy of Ms. Martin’s forthcoming book, The Yoga Prescription. This listed publication date for this book is January 11, 2022. Access to the ARC did not require me to do anything, though of course the publisher did ask for any private feedback I might want to share. I think this book has merit, and may be actually helpful for people living with chronic pain, as it was written by an author who is walking in those shoes; this is a book most yoga teachers are 100% unqualified to write—I could try to write a book like this, but I would not be credible since I do not live with chronic pain. There is a lot of autobiography that I found educational or enlightening, but the target audience will likely recognize as similar to their own experiences. Because of this, I decided to write a review on my blog.

Prior to reading this book I was totally unfamiliar with Ms. Martin as an author (though I later realized I’ve seen/read some of her prior work, unaware it was hers). The introduction introduces you to Ms. Martin and the fact that she lives with multiple sclerosis and lupus. This is continued in chapter 1, “the diagnosis,” which is also largely autobiographical. Chapter 2, “understanding the treatment plan,” introduces basic concepts in yoga. The remainder of the chapters have a yoga-related or yoga-informed title and practice associated with them (“be here now,” “just say no,” etc.) Each of these chapters also features one yoga pose or yoga-related practice suggestion.

On the theory that it’s best to end on a positive note, I’m going to start with what I disliked about The Yoga Prescription.

The title. This book isn’t a prescription, and yoga practice is not medication. While some yoga may be “prescribed” by a qualified physical therapist or other medical practitioner, this isn’t that kind of yoga. The book also fails to actually “prescribe” anything very specific and in fact one of the main themes of the book is the exact opposite, namely that yoga practice has to be personalized to your body on the specific day you are practicing.

The subtitle. “A Chronic Illness Survival Guide.” This sentiment is semi-accurate but I would have put “chronic illness” in the main title. Based on the title and subtitle, I expected to see more of a step-by-step process. Like “Chapter 1: How to yoga after your diagnosis” or something. Instead, the introduction and first chapter are autobiographical, as is about one-half to one third of each subsequent chapter. My read is that the chapters follow Ms. Martin’s experience somewhat chronologically, while the practice suggestions build on each other starting from chapter one. There’s not quite enough material to separate the biography from the yoga suggestions, and I do quite like the mix of experience plus practice suggestions. Yet I still find the subtitle as misleading as the title.

The cover. I really hope this cover changes before publication (and it might—the cover mock-up on the ARC is often not the final cover). Since the book has not been published yet I do not have a photo to show you. The cover is a blue background with a horizontal rectangular box that is yellow, with three pill capsule graphics underneath (the kind where there are two colors, one for each half of the capsule). The word “yoga” appears in the yellow box, and each of the three pills has part of the word “prescription” on it (pre-, scrip, -tion). Not only does this feel pretty stale to me—I’ve probably seen a dozen books with pills on the cover in the past—it’s an active turn-off. If I saw the cover at a bookstore, I’d pass right by without picking it up.

The explanations of Sanskrit terms. One of my pet peeves is the gross oversimplification of Sanskrit and yoga terms in the western presentation of yoga. This isn’t a pitfall unique to Ms. Martin—to be fair—but as she has more than 500 hours of yoga teacher training, it’s a bummer to see her continue the trend of dumbing-down yoga. For example, in Chapter two, the introduction to yoga, Ms. Martin writes: “Put simply, yoga means to yoke or bring together.” Except that’s not true. The meaning of “yoga” is more complicated than saying the Spanish word “rojo” means “red” in English. Yes, the word “yoga” comes from the same root word that led to our English word “yoke,” but that’s not an accurate translation of the word yoga.

As I learned from Anya Foxen (PhD) yoga is a super basic, super generic word. It means fixing a bow; employment, use, application; equipping or arraying an army; a remedy or cure; and a means, device, way, manner, or method…among many other meanings. The concept of yoga as meditation doesn’t show up until half-way through a rather lengthy list of definitions, though many American yoga teachers tell their students all yoga practice is driving toward meditation. As Ms. Foxen explained, yoking and chariots were the high-tech of the time, and the word yoga as yoking a chariot was the appropriate high-tech metaphor of the time—much like in the Renaissance we see finely-tuned clocks as the high-tech leading to the analogy “runs like clockwork,” or how us moderns talk about the brain as a finely-tuned clock. This concept of yoga as yoke is more like the word “rig” (another definition of yoga) as used in the nautical sense, and also in the sense of a trick, stratagem, or fraud (like rigging a election or rigging the game).

It would have been really interesting to see Ms. Martin tie the complicated multi-faceted word “yoga” to the equally complex challenges of living with a chronic illness that is not visible to others. (M.S. and lupus rarely have visible symptoms; you don’t “look disabled” or “look sick” to others.) I understand that Ms. Martin is aiming for a beginner audience, but this gives her the perfect opportunity to educate instead of to repeat the tired half-truths of yoga teachers past. Even if she did not want to include this much information in the introduction to yoga chapter, she could easily have thrown it into an appendix or other supplemental material at the end of the book. (I’m not even going to start on the “translation” of “namaste,” but suffice to say it repeats an American invention and is not a translation.) This is just one example of the watering-down of the terms used to talk about yoga that Ms. Martin repeats.

Things I Like and Wanted More

So let’s talk about things I loved about the book.

First, this isn’t a book about “yoga poses.” (Yes, there are yoga poses included. But if you’re looking for a book about yoga poses, you might try Ms. Martin’s earlier book, Yoga for Beginners.) While the chapter introducing yoga does make it sound like Patanjali is the be-all end-all of what yoga is (he’s not, but most western yoga can be traced by to Krishnamacharya and/or western European esoteric practitioners, all of whom emphasized Patjanjali and more or less ignored other historic texts), it clearly sets out that there are eight parts of yoga. While I take issue with her Sanskrit “translations” throughout the book, I love the way she explains how each of the yamas and niyamas—these are the ethical precepts of yoga, sort of like the “thou shalts” and the “thou shalt nots”—relates to her experience of living with a chronic illness. For example, “satya” is a principle about truthfulness and not fooling yourself or others. Ms. Martin’s explanation of satya includes very practical, accessible examples such as “If someone asks you how you’re doing, you don’t always have to say you’re fine. Be honest with yourself and those around you.” The term “brahmacharya” is usually used to describe sexual abstinence or celibacy, but that’s actually an oversimplification as bramacharya is a bigger concept about protecting your energy. Ms. Martin points out this can also mean “ridding your life of the things that drain you.” She goes on to give specific examples of ways she has abstained from work, people, and relationships that drain her. It’s rare to find a beginner yoga book that isn’t focused ONLY on yoga poses, so this is a huge plus in my mind. In fact I think it would have been cool to see a whole chapter focused on each yama and niyama and how it relates to living with a chronic illness—I bet many people could relate to at least some of the explanations, even without a chronic illness..

Second, the practices are doled out in bite-sized pieces. Lots of books on yoga practice start out with “practice for 30 minutes” or “do this whole set of yoga poses.” This one is pretty refreshing in that the message is a consistent “do what you can, when you can—and that might be different today and tomorrow.” The first practice doesn’t even come in until Chapter 3, and that first practice is “savasana,” often referred to as “corpse pose” or out here in America as “final resting pose.” These small bites can be explored one at a time, and eventually you might choose to string them together into a practice. A visual guide at the end of the book helps with this.

Third, the physical yoga poses are fairly simple: savasana, seated forward fold, sukhasana (seated cross-legged), cat/cow, balasana (child’s pose), adho mukha svanasana (downward-facing dog), side plank, tadasana (mountain pose), vrksasana (tree pose), (chair or awkward pose), “be free” (chest opener/movement). Each pose is introduced with a relatively simple line drawing. Overall I like the ine drawings, and find them more useful than the typical yoga stick-figures, but I dislike the one for vrksasana as it shows the heel of the raised foot pressed into the knee of the standing leg (a big yikes, especially if you have delicate joints). I’m also not a huge fan of the one for downward-facing dog, as it looks a lot like me in my early yoga practice—overly rounded lumbar curve/collapsed spine. Otherwise, I would have liked to see more of these line drawings, especially to illustrate the alternative suggestions for ways to adapt the pose to your body.

Fourth, every yoga pose has numerous alternatives. Early in the book, Ms. Martin advocates for using props (chapter 4, “prop yourself up”) to make the yoga pose suit your body, instead of trying to mash your body into the pose. This is advice all people practicing yoga should heed. (I’m reminded of a story where one of my yoga teachers was teaching a class and offered a block to a student in her Level 2 class. The student refused, saying: “But I’m a Level 2 student!” My teacher replied, “And this is a Level 2 block.”) Everyone’s anatomy is just slightly different, and your shorter torso many not allow you to do things my longer toros permits me to do; whether your hands touch the floor is a function of bone length, not just flexibility. Lest you think Ms. Martin is advising everyone buy a bunch of yoga props, she specifically suggests using many items most of us already have available to us, including a wall or sofa. Ample suggestions for modifications and substitutes makes the practice accessible to just about anyone.


Fifth, the end of the book has resources that are useful to people who just want a refresher or reminder of what to do. The “Quick Guide: Daily Practice” lists five elements (Breathe, Move, Close Your Eyes, Meditate, Set an Intention) with a sentence or two regarding each. These five elements are things literally anyone can do, even if they do not have a lot of time, space, or energy to devote to a practice. The “Move” component doesn’t suggest you need a specific series of yoga poses, but rather says “Wiggle your toes, go for a walk, practice a few poses. Every day do what feels good for you.” This type of movement is accessible no matter what your body is doing or feeling. Next, there is a “Reference Library” which repeats the yoga poses discussed in each chapter and the philosophical point Ms. Martin associated with each, plus the line drawing that originally accompanied the pose in the text.

Overall, I think this is a worthy read for those who have been diagnosed with a chronic illness, even if they have no interest in yoga poses—you can ignore that content and still get value from reading the book. I appreciate Ms. Martin’s personal insight. If you, or a loved one, live with a chronic illness—especially one that is “invisible” or one that includes living with chronic pain—I do recommend you check out The Yoga Prescription when it is released in January 2022.

This is a short book about how the practice of yoga can help with a variety of chronic illnesses. The author has MS and Lupus, so she understands very well the toll that having a chronic illness takes on your mind and body. The book talks about how to use props and other ways to make adjustments when a pose is too hard or uncomfortable. A lot of the book talks about her own personal journey, and then there are diagrams of the poses, and what each pose means at the end of the book. While I enjoyed learning about her journey with chronic illness, I personally wish there had been more yoga content. If you are battling a chronic illness and are a newbie to yoga then you may find this a helpful guide to get you started on your journey.

A problem with many books here on netgalley is the poor formatting when read on the Kindle. This book was well formatted and had no such issues.

The writing is really good. I'm no lit major, but I don't appreciate sloppy writing and I'm no fan of high falutin complexity for it's own sake either. This book clearly conveys the authors thoughts. The author is a good story-teller and tells her story well. The author has gone through a lot challenges and she tells her story without whining or self-pity. Yet, the story is written from the heart.

A good portion of this book is memoir than a how-to on yoga, which was my original assumption. That's ok though, I have my own health issues and it was encouraging to read how the practice can help.

I do wish there were more and better illustrations on the poses. It's not a big deal though, you can find them on YouTube easily enough.

The book doesn't make tall promises and then let you down. It sets realistic expectations and delivers.

This is a short book that focuses on how yoga can help people with some chronic illnesses. It's written with very short chapters that talk about how different poses can help with various helpful mindsets like don't compare yourself to others, lean on people, learn to say no, etc. Sparse sketches illustrate the ten or so poses that are highlighted.

The author has lupus and MS, and is also a long-time yoga teacher. She has written a memoir about her illnesses and she writes online about them. There's a lot of focus on her particular story here. Some may like that and relate to it. If you are not dealing with a similar chronic illness, you may come away feeling less supported. There's a lot about her struggles, which are debilitating, and her worries and such.

The poses themselves are relatively easy, and easy to adapt for any situation. They really don't seem to be much of the point though, other than putting your body in a position while you focus on the lesson. The lessons aren't terribly uplifting. My takeaway was there's nothing you can do to change the terrible hand you were dealt, but here are ways to make the best of it. That's probably spot on for what a lot of people feel that they want or need, though.

The book will probably be especially helpful for those who have these illnesses or similar ones, with a focus on illnesses that lead to severe fatigue and general pain. My husband has had septic polyathritis since age 2 and would be unable to do many of these poses because of calcified joints that do not bend, an artificial knee and hip, and limb pain. I don't think he'd feel that he needed the actual self-help messages. He's very good emotionally, and I don't think the book would help him physically. Personally, I am still recovering from damages that C**** caused in the spring and summer of 2020, but my particular issues aren't really addressed here. I felt kind of like I was crashing someone else's support group.

All in all, it's a great book for its audience, and will probably be extremely helpful for many.

I read a digital ARC of this book for review.

First of all this is an inspiring book for those who live in chronic pain. The author, having to deal herself with two chronic diseases, try to help those people, to make them feel they are not alone. It is also an important book for those who live near the patients with chronic pain. Helps them understand what their loved ones get through every day. But even if you don't care about chronic diseases, this book offers a glimpse of basic yoga philosophy and poses. Being a beginner in yoga myself, I found this book very instructive and enlightening. I would recommended it for those who would like to make changes into their life, chronic disease or not.

The Yoga Prescription
Cory Martin
Published by Write Out Publishing
Release Date: January 2022

This Yoga text was written from the perspective of an individual with chronic illness and goes into how Yoga has assisted her along her journey with chronic disease (namely MS and Lupis). This book can easily transcend all sorts of chronic illness as it is written in such a way that it can be universal.

The author did a beautiful job in reminding readers that yoga is individual and not to compare with another. She provided a great overview of the eight limbs of yoga and general statements on how they fit together.

Moving through the book, I value that pose modifications were introduced, normalized and encouraged. Added to this was a discussion around the use of props to assist the reader in learning about best ways to make the poses more manageable and beneficial.

I love that this was written in such a beautiful way that it makes you feel empowered and comfortable with making your yoga practice work for you!

I appreciate how in each chapter, a basic asana is introduced with some description of the pose, ways to modify to suit your needs and beautiful illustrations to visualize the pose.

The author reminds readers the practice of keeping a beginner’s mind and that it is a practice in all sense of the word and not a means to attaining perfection. Yoga is meant to be a lifelong work in progress.

Key messages:
1. Do what feels good for you
2. Stop comparing or pushing your body to do things that cause harm
3. Practice and make your practice tailored to your own needs
4. Surrender to the practice a

I would definitely recommend this book as a basic yoga text for those interested in trying yoga with or without having a chronic illness. This was a good overview and review of basic yoga concepts and written in a way that takes some of the overwhelm out of the topic for such beginners.

REVIEW YOGA PRESCRIPTION

The structure of the book and the content page looks excellent. I feel comfortable reading the book online, easy for me to read as the font are big enough for me to read. The introduction chapter's language made me feel relaxed and splendid, like the author is talking directly to me, and I listen. The words make so sense to me. It is a good point that Yoga does not just pose or asana, and it is much more. This author had experience with MS and lupus and said that this book is excellent for anyone who has chronic illnesses. If you do not have that, it still is a good book.

An excellent suggestion to be included in the book, to have a yoga plan and treatment plan, as the author says, to help you to improve your well-being.

Further to some chapters include yoga philosophies, including the Yoga sutra. Every chapter includes one or two poses, so it is simple to learn Yoga. I would recommend this book to any beginners - it is so comfortable! If someone has already practised Yoga for years, the book is still helpful for light reading.

2.5 stars

Seeing the premise of this book was very interesting and original, at least to me, especially with it being centered on keeping your body active while living with chronic illness. This was a surprisingly fast read. some sections it felt a little drug out and I felt myself wanting to flip to the yoga instruction section at the end of each chapter.

Overall this one was an interesting, but I did feel myself get impatient and distracted with the prose and more interested in the actual yoga instructions and guidance. If you live with chronic illness and/or are interested in dialogue revolving around being patient and gentle with your body while also staying active I definitely think you should check this one out.

This advanced copy was given in exchange for an honest review

OK so I saw this, on net galley it doesn’t technically come out until January 2022.
I am going to be ordering, this for my professional library.
I’m currently in yoga teacher training. I’m reading as much, of this stuff. as I can get my hands on.

I love how she talks about props and how they’re important to tools. This book is fun and easy to read.

It’s nice to see yoga talk you were being talked about, as a tool not as a cure-all magic pill.
It’s a wonderful, helpful tool they can help so many people.

I wanna be very cognizant, of that in my own. practice both professionally and personally.

I can already tell that this book is going to be a resource that I pull off the shelf constantly


It’s fantastic cannot recommend enough

I was pleasantly surprised by Cory Martin’s refreshing take on using yoga as a means of coping with her two chronic illnesses (MS and lupus). Struggling with my own autoimmune diagnosis several years ago, I looked to yoga and other forms of gentle exercise to relax my mind and body, but could not make a good connection. Martin’s story is inspiring, and has given me a plan for trying yoga again.
*Thank you to NetGalley, Cory Martin, and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review*

As someone that deals with a chronic illness, I’ve been considering yoga for the longest time and reading this book has truly inspired me to give it a chance.

It can be hard to get out of bed and do everyday activities with dealing with a chronic or illness or pain and this book was inspiring. I also really enjoyed the guide.

This was a very inspirational and enlightening book for a Yoga beginner such as myself. The author speaks in refreshing plain language and shares her journey with Lupus and MS. She is an experienced yoga instructor and former athlete. Cory Martin offers a simple and clear overview on yoga philosophy and simple instructions, as well as illustrations, on poses. And, at the end, there is a comprehensive list of terms with definitions and poses. I don’t have a chronic disease, but I am getting older and I appreciated the encouragement and advice this author provides and I do believe yoga is one of the best ‘all body’ prescriptions we can participate in to alleviate physical and emotional pain. Thank you Netgalley, Write Out Publishing, and Cory Martin for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I've lived with chronic pain most of my life. I've tried yoga in the past, and I always did a lot of modifications.

The author was open and honest about her own medical issues, which explained the story behind this book and was relatable. The overall tone of the book is very hopeful. The writing style is clear and concise.

Each chapter ends with a yoga asana, an explanation of how to do the pose, and a helpful illustration. I look forward to implementing (slowly) some of these moves into my day. The author does a nice job of reminding readers that life with a chronic illness is manageable, but it's still possible to live a good life.

As someone with longcovid, I found this book practical and easy to follow. I implemented many of the practices and they helped my anxiety if nothing else. I have only been following it for a short while, but I am sure with continual practice I will see changes from these techniques that can help transform my life and illness management.

I needed this book! At a time while I am grappling with the changes in my body due to recent life altering diagnoses, I have been spending several weeks focusing on self healing, and changing my mindset about my health and well-being. One thing that I have added to my life is yoga. The Yoga Prescription was the perfect validation for me as a new yogi. Cory Martin teaches some of the key components to yoga, while showing readers what the principles of yoga mean to someone dealing with chronic illness.

This short read got down to business, made starting yoga accessible to anyone, and provided a deep understanding and reflective look at how to mentally deal with the daily struggle of health. Much like yoga, Cory points out that wellness is a practice. Each day, as long as we are listening to our body, maintaining it in the present, accepting our bodies for what they are capable of, and first doing no harm to the body we have - living with illnesses is manageable. She doesn’t paint it as a pretty beautiful cure or overshadow the struggle of living with daily struggle, but this book does provide hope for a way to acceptance to what we are capable of today.

My favorite part through this introduction to yoga and my own personal introduction to beginning yoga practice is that yoga is all about listening to your body and always assessing where you are in the moment. Yoga is so individual, and even when I find myself in a yoga class surrounded by people, I am alone with my practice, alone with my mat. Yoga is not a competition or an end game: “The point of yoga isn’t to covet what someone else has, but to celebrate our own individual strengths.”